The AUD/USD pair edges lower on Friday and erodes a part of the previous day’s strong gains to the 0.7000 neighborhood, or over a one-week high. The pair remains on the defensive through the first half of the European session, though manages to find some support near mid-0.6900s and recovers a few pips from the daily low.
The USD on its own surrenders its modest intraday gains and turns lower for the second successive day. A key factor is the repositioning trade ahead of Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s appearance at the Jackson Hole Symposium.
The overnight hawkish comments by Fed officials reaffirmed market expectations that the US central bank will stick to its policy tightening path.
In the meantime, elevated US Treasury bond yields should continue to act as a tailwind for the buck. Apart from the prevalent cautious market mood – amid growing worries about a deeper global economic downturn, should continue to lend support to the safe-haven greenback. This, in turn, should keep a lid on any meaningful intraday positive move for the AUD/USD pair.
Heading into the key event risk, traders on Friday will also take cues from the release of the US Core PCE Price Index, due later during the early North American session. This, along with the US bond yields and the broader risk sentiment, could influence the USD and provide some impetus to the AUD/USD pair, though the immediate market reaction is likely to be short-lived.
